The Theory of Communicative Action: Volume 2: Lifeword and System: A Critique of Functionalist Reason - Couverture souple

Habermas, Juergen

Couverture souple

ISBN 10 : 080701401X ISBN 13 : 9780807014011

Editeur : Beacon Press, 1985

Synopsis

Book by Jrgen Habermas

A propos du livre

Quatrième de couverture

Here, for the first time in English, is volume one of JurgenHabermas′s long–awaited magnum opus: The Theory of CommunicativeAction. This pathbreaking work is guided by three interrelatedconcerns: (1) to develop a concept of communicative rationalitythat is no longer tied to the subjective and individualisticpremises of modern social and political theory; (2) to construct atwo–level concept of society that integrates the ′lifeworld′ and′system′ paradigms; and (3) to sketch out a critical theory ofmodernity that explains its sociopathologies in a new way.

Habermas approaches these tasks through a combination ofconceptual analyses, systematic reflections, and criticalreconstructions of such predecessors as Marx and Weber, Durkheimand Mead, Horkheimer and Adorno, Schutz and Parsons. Reason andthe Rationalization of Society develops a sociological theoryof action that stresses not its means–ends or teleological aspect,but the need to coordinate action socially via communication. Inthe introductory chapter Habermas sets out a powerful series ofarguments on such foundational issues as cultural and historicalrelativism, the methodology of Verstehen, the inseparabilty ofinterpretation from critique. In addition to clarifying thenormative foundations of critical social inquiry, this sets thestage for a systematic appropriation of Weber′s theory ofrationalization and its Marxist reception by Lukacs, Horkheimer andAdorno.

This is an important book for degree students of philosophy,sociology and related subjects.

Présentation de l'éditeur

Juergen Habermas opens Volume 2 with a brilliant reinterpretation of Mead and Durkheim and then develops his own approach to society, combining two hitherto competing paradigms, "system" and "lifeworld." The strength of this combination is then demonstrated in a detailed critique of Parsons's theory of social systems. Concluding with a critical reconstruction of the Weberan and Marxian treatment of modernity and its discontents, Habermas sets a new agenda for the critical theory of contemporary society. The combination of historical and theoretical sweep, analytical acumen and synthetic power, imagination and engagement mark this as one of the great works of twentieth-century social theory.

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: Beacon Press
• Date d'édition: 1985
• ISBN 10: 080701401X
• ISBN 13: 9780807014011
• Reliure: Broché
• Langue: anglais
• Numéro d'édition: 2
• Nombre de pages: 464